Does defending come with a cost? Examining the psychosocial correlates of defending behaviour among bystanders of bullying in a Canadian sample.

Bullying is a form of interpersonal trauma that impacts all parties involved, including the youth who witness the bullying. Some bystanders choose to intervene and defend the child being bullied. Defending may be positively associated with psychosocial difficulties because youth are becoming more involved in a traumatic event, or because youth may be actively coping with the distress elicited from witnessing bullying; however, the link between defending and psychosocial difficulties has not yet been examined. The current study investigated the age-related differences and psychosocial difficulties associated with defending behaviour in school bullying. Data were collected from 5071 Canadian youth from Grades 4-12. Participants completed an online survey at school, which assessed demographic information, recent defending behaviour, location and frequency of witnessing bullying, and psychosocial difficulties (internalizing, anger, psychosomatic, academic, and relationship difficulties). A subsample of 1443 pure bystanders (no current bullying involvement) was used for regression analyses. Defending behaviour was more common among girls and among younger students. For boys, defending behaviour was associated with more psychosocial difficulties compared to boys who only witnessed the bullying. This relationship was less consistent for girls. Defending behaviour was also associated with more psychosocial difficulties at high levels of bullying exposure. These associations suggest that defending may come at a cost for youth, or that youth are defending their peers to cope with negative emotions associated with witnessing interpersonal trauma. More longitudinal research is needed to clarify these associations.